Thursday, July 16, 2009

Vegan Deviled Eggs ... Yes, I Did!

When I first opened the black salt I'd purchased to make the Tofu Omelet from Vegan Brunch, I was knocked out by the intense smell of deviled eggs. The salt even tastes exactly like those cold yolk-stuffed eggs of Thanksgiving dinners and family reunions gone by. I knew at that moment that I had a mission — to create a vegan deviled egg.

And without further ado, I give you Tofu Deviled "Eggy" Bites:

Yes, I know eggs are egg-shaped, and these cuties are square, but shaping tofu into eggs seems like a waste of good tofu. Who cares what shape they're in if they taste awesome?

The base is plain ole' extra firm tofu, which shares a very similar texture and tastelessness with boiled eggs. The topping is made from silk tofu, black salt, turmeric, pickle relish, red onion, and love. I swear to god, these bites taste just like the real thing — or at least from what I remember. To be honest, I haven't had a deviled egg in over four years, but this is how I remember them tasting.

The recipe is most definitely going in my cookbook's appetizer section, but I'm so proud of this one that I need to share it with the world right now. Here goes ...

Tofu Deviled “Eggy” Bites

Black salt, commonly found at most Indian food markets, is the magical ingredient in these babies. It tastes EXACTLY like eggs, so don't skimp on it. Order it off the Internet if you cannot find any, but don't make these guys without it. I promise it will not be the same.

Drain water from the extra firm tofu. Wrap in several layers of paper towels and place on a plate. Put something heavy on top, like a jar or book, and allow to press in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

After extra firm tofu is pressed, cut it in half. Then cut each half into four quadrants or squares. Slide a knife on the side of each quadrant to cut three squares from each. In the end, you should have about 24 little squares. If these instructions are too confusing, just cut into bite-sized squares and aim to get about 20 to 24. Set aside.

Place the silk tofu, beans, mayonnaise, mustard, turmeric, and one teaspoon black salt into a food processor. Process for about a minute or until smooth. Transfer to a mixing bowl and stir in relish, onion, and black pepper. Set aside.

Pour the other tablespoon of black salt into a small bowl. Using your fingertip, rub a touch of black salt on each white firm tofu square. Top each square with a dollop (about one teaspoon) of the yellow silk tofu mixture.

Sprinkle with paprika and top with chives.

Makes about 24 bites.

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80 comments:

Bianca those look crazy good! I have actually thought about veganizing deviled eggs before...I am glad you did all the hard work for me :) These will be a big hit a my next family gathering, I am certain!!

Bianca, I already knew you were one rockin' vegan, but I just raised your pedestal up another zillion feet. I've been waiting so long for someone to veganize deviled eggs! I don't think I've had one for, oh, 15+ years. I need to get some of that black salt!

I can taste these at 2AM. If only I could find the black salt locally. Whole Foods wanted over $20 for what looked like a tablespoon. Is there a place to get it with free shipping online? I would buy more spices etc if I could find a good source. Living in boring town is no fun for veggies.

imagine me hugging you right now! it's a big squeeze and i'm telling you that you're the absolute best! ever! i have been so sadfaced, missing deviled eggs - something my mom made and i guess i just assumed they really weren't veganizable. i guessed wrong! you are too awesome and i puffy heart you the most for sharing the recipe with us! i need to find black salt and you better believe that i'm running out today after work on a black salt mission! you just made my friday all that more glorious! thank you + one million! superw00t!

Cool recipe, very creative...I never liked deviled eggs even in my pregan days...it wasn't the taste that I didn't like, but rather the idea of them. But I think I'm gonna give these a try. Thanks for sharing your creative talents.

this is a great appetizer. I always disliked eggs but I think I would just make the filling of this and spread it on bread or something even if it is tofu it would be disguised so I can eat it:) Will have to order some black salt online as I have given up searching here.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you! I love deviled eggs and I've been thinking about tackling a vegan version. With baby and dissertation and everything else, it's nice to have it done for me...Can't wait to try this!

Almost everyone I know has had a negative experience with devilled eggs, where they ate far too many and got vurry sick. Somehow I expect you could eat loads of your tofu devils and not have the same effect. These look so great!

Ohmygosh - This is SO FUNNY!!! I did exactly the same thing when I first discovered "Black Salt" four or five years ago!! (long before I had a blog or thought to write these things down.) My "yolks" also use a little bit of garbanzo puree to add more of the mealy "yolk" texture. But yeah, perfect use for the stuff. YUM-O!!(I LOVE LOVE LOVE black salt! It works in so MANY different dishes really - Makes tofu into AWESOME and very authentic "egg-salad" too by the way)

Omg thank you so much for posting this!! Before going vegan I used to looooove deviled eggs. They were one of my favorite foods, and one that I miss the most. I guess it's time for me to finally go track down some black salt!

I made these with a few modifications. I didn't have silk tofu or relish. Instead I used extra vegenaise and some horseradish. I've always thought horseradish was eggy and they turned out great! next time i'll try them with the relish and silk tofu to compare.

I am SO excited to make these! Seriously, just last week my company had a potluck, and I looked at the deviled eggs, sighed because I used to adore them, and thought to myself, "That is one thing that just can't be veganized." Thank you for making me eat my words! I live right near a Penzeys (for the black salt), and once I have some people to serve these to, it's ON. If you were making these to bring somewhere, would you transport the squares and topping separately, then assemble on site?

Again, THANK YOU. I've been sending this link to everyone and their brother. :)

You are now my hero! This month for MOFO I'm veganizing family favorites. My friend just DOUBLE DOG DARED me to veganize her late hubby's recipe. I'm going to use yours as a base (his is a tad different) I'll make sure to give you the plug on my bloggy.

Hi Bianca, I'm def trying these! Hey. I have a new recipe for 'vegan sunny side up eggs'. I'd like to collaborate with you on the final recipe. This black salt might be a necc ingredient. Please email me. rocky@shepheardillustration.comThanks and thanks for the great recipe.Rocky Shepheard

We were trying to think of how to make devilled eggs, too. We got most of the ingredients but we didn't know black salt. My mom wanted to find black salt for an Indian chat. We're going to make this for our (vegan) staff potluck with a HOT theme. I suggested "Hell" and my mom told me about devilled eggs (i've always been vegan so I didnlt know). - Ian, just turned 8.

it's easter. i made your deviled egg recipe thinking it might turn out ok, but they turned out amazing! you are awesome. this is the first recipe i've tried from your site, and now i'm looking forward to trying more!

Thank you for this amazing recipe! My husband and I just went vegan last fall and so I can attest that these do taste and feel AMAZINGLY like the "real" thing -- but better :D They've been a real hit with non-vegan friends, too!

The chives are good for garnish, but I prefer green olives and pimientos (along with the paprika). Reminds me of so many family holiday meals where we had deviled eggs except these are yummier, healthier, and cruelty-free -- and no eggs to peel!!!

Boil eggs until fork tender. Cut 6 of them in half; peel the 7th. Use a melon-baller to scoop out the centers of the 12 potato halves. Mash the scooped out bits along with the 7th potato and mix in all remaining ingredients except paprika. Fill each half with a scoop of the yellow mixture. Dust with paprika, and enjoy!!

Obviously you can use your favorite family recipe for deviled eggs, using the same technique. You can peel the potato halves if you want to, but it’s not necessary. The taste and texture are extremely satisfying to a vegan who has been craving this holiday staple.

I make something similar to this. I use a firm tofu base but instead of silken tofu middle, I used mashed avocado with veganaise, nutritional yeast, mustard, and a little bid of crumbled firm tofu (because I liked a chunky center). It was very delicious. Maybe it's just me, but when you mix avocado and veganaise, it taste just like a yolk.

I wish these were as good as they look. For me it just didn't do anything. I followed the recipe exact and it just tasted odd, like turmeric and mustard. The consistency of the middle was too slimy not that pastey feel like real deviled eggs I think I'll try using potato recipe next time.

Oh. My. GODDESS these are amazing!!! I just made them, with only one substitution- I used onion powder instead of minced red onion, simply because that's how I used to make them in my pre-vegan days. :) But OH are they delicious! I used a piping bag to pipe the mixture on top of the tofu squares, and added a dash of extra paprika on top. SOOO good! Thank you, thank you, thank you! I have been craving deviled eggs for YEARS and now I can finally enjoy them compassionately. <3

You are too awesome! I am 19 and I've been a vegetarian for about 5 years and wanted to go vegan. I WAS waiting until the holidays were over because I wanted to do it right and I thought starting out around holiday time when there were so many yummy things to eat would be so hard. Now I will be switching to vegan this week.

Bianca, I'm only now coming across your page & I'm so excited to make some of your recipes (and am looking forward to your cookbook!). I just bought some black salt myself - it does taste exactly like deviled eggs, it's insane. Thanks for this recipe!

Hey Erin! The other 1/2 teaspoon is spread on the white tofu eggs, just to give it a super eggy flavor. But sounds like they were fine without it. I may have made a typo on the recipe here though. I'll check it out! Thanks for letting me know.

These are awesome! I'd totally missed them on your site. Using a cookie/food cutter would be awesome, like the little plum blossom one I've been using for shaped daikon (the dog and I just eat the bits or I make stock with it). You could make a little tofu salad up with the bits cut off.

My name is Bianca ...

About Me

I'm a 9-year vegan, 19-year vegetarian from the Mid-South, not too far from the muddy banks of the Mississippi River. And that means cornbread, butter beans, and collard greens.
These days, I live in Memphis. Check out my cookbook — Cookin' Crunk. It's filled with yummilicious veganized soul food and country classics.